The host club had recorded a convincing win over last season's champions Rock Celtic the previous weekend, but found Duleek a much tougher nut to crack.

Jamie Flaherty slotted into the heart of the Duleek defence alongside Joey Martin, and while the latter had to retire after only 10 minutes the visitors kept a very tight rein on the Cosmos frontrunners who had wreaked so much havoc against Rock.

Replacement Jamie McCormack excelled for the winners, as a midfield that included Bryan Murphy gave great protection to the defence, and was largely responsible for the side controlling 90 per cent of the play in the opening half. However, Tony Grant's charges didn't gain a tangible reward for their efforts, despite creating some really good scoring openings.

But the second half wasn't long on when good work by Anthony Burke allowed Junior Francisco to slip player/manager Grant through the Navan defence and he slotted the ball under the goalkeeper.

Ten minutes later Duleek increased their lead when Navan failed to clear a corner and Anthony Burke's shot was deflected into his own net by a home defender.

The east Meath outfit went 3-0 in front when Navan failed to deal with another corner kick and Flaherty finished neatly from a tight angle.

Navan reduced the deficit with 15 minutes left, but Duleek held out without any real trouble.